Pope understands that end-of-holiday feeling

Pope John Paul II sympathised with the "readjustment" problems people can have returning to work and school, when he met crowds at Castel Gandolfo yesterday. Appearing jovial and well-rested from his own summer break, the Pope spoke in a firm and clear voice, and joked with pilgrims who had gathered at his lakeside retreat in the hills south of Rome. For the second weekend in a row, he chatted in a number of languages, singing along with people spontaneously, and jokingly telling some to wait their turn for his greetings. In his comments, the Pope said he hoped everyone had enjoyed time with friends and family during the summer holidays. "On the psychological level, the return to ordinary life isn't always easy. In fact it can sometimes bring some readjustment difficulties to daily concerns," he said. "But it is in daily life that that God calls us to follow the maturity of spiritual life, which consists of living in an extraordinary way ordinary things," he said. The Pope is expected to remain at Castel Gandolfo for a few more weeks before returning to the Vatican. source: cinjub